I understand the need to increase bandwidth too… I’ve had to increase mine twice now… since my boy started watching kids shows online… and since my wife found it was much easier and quieter for the sleeping kids watching her shows online rather than on TV.

What sort of backward telco are you using Gnomer that doesn’t shape after you hit your limit!

It either means you are with Telstra (which unless you have no choice because they are the evil overlord of your web access and you can’t go elsewhere there is a cheaper better option even with the Telstra tax – I have to pay for that), or you are using wireless. I tried the wireless thing (although on Virgin which is incidentally owned and run by Optus) and I couldn’t live with the latency… so I’ve gone back to the ridiculously priced Telstra taxed ADSL1…

Now don’t get me started on the fact that I live in the middle of a major metropolitan city and yet I’m in an Internet black hole stuck on an overloaded RIM because someone didn’t have the forethought (or backbone) to build another telephone exchange in one of the most rapidly developing segments of the city… I’m just glad I’m not 2km further north where they are not close enough to the exchange to even get ADSL1.

UNLIMITED plans… I was just joking at their glossy newpaper insert with workmates today. (btw, the unlimited plan included 15gb of data… Ummm not my definition of unlimited)

The issues is it’s one of their new “fusion” plans phone and net combined. I used to have a bundle… So discounted for both, but seperate enough I could change my net plan instantly.

Fusion can’t change because it’s linked to the phone (the fact that the phone portion doesn’t changeis apparently irrelevant)

I just saw their 150gb net only plan… Considering the fusion plan is fundamentally net + voip phone line, it’s obvious (in hindsight) that I can save 1/2 the cost and just use skype… Looking into this, but a I am only 6 months into a 24m contract, I’m sure they will tear a hole in my wallet to change over.

Ooo – except I have an aversion to Optus I would have almost been sucked in my their new plans (actually I seem to have developed an aversion to all the telco come internet providers). I thought it was interesting that they were finally offering ‘unlimited’ plans that looked vaguely affordable. I hadn’t stopped to read that fine print – I feel for you! I was looking to switch to naked dsl at my old place but then calculated how much the exit fee was going to cost me (I had read the print differently and they were going to charge me the full exit fee, rather than half since I was half way through my contract) and didn’t go for it… in the end it was a good move because we ended up moving within 6 months.

I wonder if the ACCC (or whoever the advertising iwatchdog is) would find an issue with their definition of unlimited :)

Ohhh and as for exchange capacity. I’ve moved into a 40 year old outer suburb. Therefore comms are the beat… Of course now there is a new population explosion with all the new housing estates… Therefore capacity is now shot as well.

Over the last couple of months my lag has gone from 200-400, to 400-3,000. ICC & Arena is a pain when there are 10-40 seconds of casting with no client feedback. (I still cast, I still pwn, but I die a fair bit more than I should).

One of my arena partners is US based. I have been cursing that he is so much better than me… Of course his BAD 100 lag might have something to do with it…

Yeah that is a good description for what I’m seeing too. I’ve been trying out wow-tunnels to see if that will improve it, but it really doesn’t make much difference because the capacity issues are between me and the exchange. They’re trying to cram way too much data over one fibre optics cable…

The thing that sucks is that I did my research before buying my house as much as I could (not checking with the previous owners number… which I should have done in hindsight). I checked with a friends number that lives about 2 minutes walk away, in a slightly newer estate – but the automated checks just tell you you are on an ADSL2 enabled exchange which is true – but it doesn’t tell you that the housing estate you live in is on a RIM. Apparently they can’t do ADSL2 where you don’t have copper between your house and the exchange. I’m sure they could do something as it used to be you couldn’t get ADSL1 on a RIM and they’ve fixed that!

Ahh well… I’m stuck with overpriced and slow Internet until … well as you said – the end of time because the opposition and telcos are trying to block the new plan. Interestingly it was one the points of interest with our local politician in a survey… but the Internet situation didn’t rank in the end results… I need more geeks in my area!

I’ve had tech support out to the house. They can “see noise” on the line when I’m talking to support, but when the tech comes out… Well it’s like whenyou take your car to the mechanic to fix “that rattle”.

The rattle stops when you arrive, returns when you leave, but isn’t present when the tech is looking.

Tell me about it. The current govt wants to fix it but the former govt (the opposition) doesnts want to hurt the “mum and dad” shareholders that purchased the dodgy infrastructure monopolists shares on the oppositions recommendation. Cause that wod make the already worthless shares worth less and destory the wonderful monster that they created when they sold off the govt asset originally.

I wish for once we didn’t have an opposition party in politics, rather a collaborative party that put crap politics aside to achieve good for the people.

I’m with optus with 20 gigs – easiest adsl2 at the time.. and now I get to argue with them every month as to my limit when they over charge me which apparently is a billing issue /sigh just check your online usage enough, and if my penalty isn’t too high for breaking contract I’ve heard good things about internode.
20 gigs is not enough!